This invention relates to barbecue grills, and, more particularly, to an auxiliary gas burner for use with cart mounted barbecue grills.
It is common practice to mount a gas fired barbecue grill on a movable cart. Such a cart, in general, carries the grill in a central location at the top of the cart, so that the cooking surface of the grill is located approximately at waist-level for an adult to facilitate the use of the grill. The cart generally includes a lower shelf for holding the fuel supply, such as, for example, an LP gas tank, and side shelves, located on either side of the grill and extending laterally therefrom. Often a front shelf is also included.
In most such cart and grill arrangements, the shelves consist of metal support members upon which are arrayed a plurality of wooden slats, and one or more of the shelves may be foldable in the manner of a drop-leaf table. The shelves perform a very useful function by creating platforms upon which plates, platters, cooking utensils, condiments and the like may be placed.
Most such grills include a hinged top which is opened for placement of the food to be cooked on the grid of the grill, and then closed so that the food is, in essence, enclosed in an oven. Generally there is an auxiliary grid which is movably located above the main cooking grid, upon which food, such as whole potatoes, may be placed for baking when the hinged top is closed. The hinged top, however, places limitations on the height of the food situated on the grid, since, for proper operation, the top must be freely closable without interfering with, or interference from, the food. Thus a pot of coffee, or a bowl or pot of soup or chili for example, is generally so tall or large that it prevents proper closure of the top. To provide a means for heating or brewing coffee, or making soup or the like, some grills have been provided with an auxiliary burner which takes the place of one of the side shelves and is mounted on the shelf support members. Fuel for the auxiliary burner is supplied from the LP gas tank, generally by means of a split gas line connection at the tank, and a control valve located on the burner. The disadvantages of such an arrangement are that it permanently removes one shelf from the cart, it requires a fairly long gas hose or pipe, which along with the split or "y" connection, increases the number of elements susceptible to developing leaks, it requires a control valve permanently mounted on, and integral with, the auxiliary burner, and it is relatively expensive. In addition, where because of space limitations, the cart is equipped with foldable shelves, the auxiliary burner adds to the minimum transverse dimensions of the cart and cannot be folded down.